Furniture efficient battery pack

ABSTRACT

A battery pack to be used in motorized furniture is provided. The battery pack includes a plurality of polymer cells. The plurality of polymer cells is connected such that a threshold voltage is achieved. The battery pack also includes a motherboard coupled to the plurality of polymer cells. The motherboard is configured to monitor and regulate each cell in the plurality of cells, as well as the entire plurality of cells as a whole. The motherboard is further configured to regulate power flow throughout the plurality of cells such that more than two motors may operate at the same time.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e)to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/799,028 (BCHNP001P), titled“FURNITURE EFFICIENT BATTERY PACK,” filed Jan. 30, 2019, the entirety ofwhich is incorporated in its entirety by this reference for allpurposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to battery packs, morespecifically to furniture-operating battery packs.

BACKGROUND

Traditionally, furniture has largely been immobile or manually operated.Only recently has furniture become motorized. However, motorizedfunctions on furniture (eg. reclining) are often battery-operated.Unfortunately, furniture is built to utilize existing batteries, whichare not designed specifically for the operation of motorized furnitureand which present a variety of limitations.

In addition, because of the standard battery specifications, the ratioof the size of current batteries to the volume of stored power is notoptimal for operating motorized furniture. In order to double thecapacity, the standard battery would essentially be double the size.Further, standard battery packs are simple and low function, makingusage, troubleshooting, and maintenance much more difficult. Thus, thereexists a need for an improved battery system that is more user-friendly,can increase capacity without increasing the size impractically, and isadaptable to the designs and intended functions of motorized furniture.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of the disclosure in orderto provide a basic understanding of certain embodiments of the presentdisclosure. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosureand it does not identify key/critical elements of the present disclosureor delineate the scope of the present disclosure. Its sole purpose is topresent some concepts disclosed herein in a simplified form as a preludeto the more detailed description that is presented later.

In general, certain embodiments of the present disclosure provide abattery pack and a motorized furniture system. The battery pack includesa plurality of polymer cells. The plurality of polymer cells isconnected such that a threshold voltage is achieved. The battery packalso includes a motherboard coupled to the plurality of polymer cells.The motherboard is configured to monitor and regulate each cell in theplurality of cells, as well as the entire plurality of cells as a whole.The motherboard is further configured to alter the charging anddischarging of each cell in the plurality of polymer cells individuallysuch that all the cells in the plurality of polymer cells charge anddischarge at the same rates.

In some embodiments, a second motherboard for connecting directly to theplurality of polymer cells, wherein the second motherboard iselectrically connected to the motherboard. In some embodiments, thethreshold voltage is 25.9 volts. In some embodiments, the plurality ofpolymer cells comprises exactly seven cells with a voltage of 3.7 voltseach. In some embodiments, the plurality of cells and the motherboardare configured to operate two to six motors at the same time. In someembodiments, the battery pack further comprises an LED light configuredto represent remaining power in the battery pack. In some embodiments,the battery pack further comprises a buzzer configured to notify a userthat the battery level is 10% or less when the user activates the motor.In some embodiments, the motherboard includes a Bluetooth processor suchthat a user can turn off the battery output using a mobile device. Insome embodiments, the battery pack is configured to be charged with atrickle charger. In some embodiments, the battery pack includes one ofthe following charge capacity to physical volume ratios: 1) 2000milliampere hours (mAh) to 337.83 cm³, 2) 4000 mAh to 459.77 cm³, and 3)6000 mAh to 605.22 cm³.

These and other embodiments are described further below with referenceto the figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure may best be understood by reference to the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, whichillustrate particular embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1A illustrates one perspective view of an example battery pack, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1B illustrates another perspective view of an example battery pack,in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1C illustrates one perspective view of an example battery pack withthe outside casing removed, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1D illustrates another perspective view of an example battery packwith the outside casing removed, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1E illustrates yet another perspective view of an example batterypack with the outside casing removed, in accordance with someembodiments.

FIG. 2A illustrates one perspective view of an example battery cell, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 2B illustrates another perspective view of an example battery cell,in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3A illustrates one side of an example regulatory motherboard, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3B illustrates another side of an example regulatory motherboard,in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 4A illustrates one side of an example charging motherboard, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 4B illustrates another side of an example charging motherboard, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 5A illustrates an example industry standard batter pack, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 5B illustrates an example industry standard battery cell, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example comparison of an improved battery pack anda standard battery pack, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate an example of motorized furniture functions, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example computer system, in accordance with someembodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PARTICULAR EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to some specific examples of thepresent disclosure including the best modes contemplated by theinventors for carrying out the present disclosure. While the presentdisclosure is described in conjunction with these specific embodiments,it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the presentdisclosure to the described embodiments. On the contrary, it is intendedto cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be includedwithin the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by theappended claims.

For example, the techniques of the present disclosure may be describedin the context of particular algorithms or formulas. However, it shouldbe noted that the techniques of the present disclosure may apply tovarious other algorithms In the following description, numerous specificdetails are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding ofthe present disclosure. Particular example embodiments of the presentdisclosure may be implemented without some or all of these specificdetails. In other instances, well known process operations have not beendescribed in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the presentdisclosure.

Various techniques and mechanisms of the present disclosure willsometimes be described in singular form for clarity. However, it shouldbe noted that some embodiments include multiple iterations of atechnique or multiple instantiations of a mechanism unless notedotherwise. For example, a system uses a processor in a variety ofcontexts. However, it will be appreciated that a system can use multipleprocessors while remaining within the scope of the present disclosureunless otherwise noted. Furthermore, the techniques and mechanisms ofthe present disclosure will sometimes describe a connection between twoentities. It should be noted that a connection between two entities doesnot necessarily mean a direct, unimpeded connection, as a variety ofother entities may reside between the two entities. For example, aprocessor may be connected to memory, but it will be appreciated that avariety of bridges and controllers may reside between the processor andmemory. Consequently, a connection does not necessarily mean a direct,unimpeded connection unless otherwise noted.

Overview

Current furniture battery packs are large, bulky, and tubular and onaverage host approximately 2.34 mAh per cm³. With current technology,tubular battery cells have been used to create a larger capacity batteryto store 2000 mAh, and 4000 mAh. However, the battery sizing wasextremely large. For example, a 2000 mAh battery was 854.70 cm³, a 4000mAh battery was 1709.40 cm³, and a 6000 mAh battery was 2564.10 cm³.While using the current technology on the market to create a largercapacity battery, the issue of bogging down or stopping when engagedwith more than one motor at a time continued. In addition, the size andshape of batteries necessary to operate many types of furniture aredifficult to accommodate while maintaining the style and functionalityof furniture designs.

Current batteries will not run devices with more than 2 motors and, aspreviously mentioned, usually bog down or stop completely when trying torun motors simultaneously. The performance of motorized furniture withcurrent battery technology is therefore limited to focused operationsand operations which may be regulated by 2 motors alone.

An alternative to tubular cells is polymer cells. This is becausepolymer cells have a greater power storage capacity ratio. For example,the size to volume of stored power ranges between 5.92 mAh per cm³ (for2000 mAh capacity), 8.70 mAh per cm³ (for 4000 mAh), and 9.913 mAh percm³ (for 6000 mAh), which is 240%, 359%, 424% smaller than tubular cellsfor the same capacity. This reduction in size allows for storing insidemost motorized furniture. However, simply ganging polymer cells togetherto generate the necessary 25.9 volts to operate furniture resulted in anextremely volatile battery pack. The cells would charge and discharge atdifferent rates compromising the battery integrity and performancerendering the battery useless. Thus, the cells when ganged to form apack needed to be regulated to insure even charging and discharging.

In addition, some current batteries have a single light showing the unitis powered but no indication of amount of charge remaining in battery. Alack of transparency in remaining battery life makes it difficult todetermine when units need to be charged. Some batteries have a solutionin a buzzer that will sound when the battery is getting low on power.However, these buzzers often sound at random with no interaction withthe furniture. As a result, despite there being an indication of batterylife, buzzers may not present an evident sign of battery failure. Thus,current batteries are not optimal in the operation of motorizedfurniture and actually limit the multi-functionality of devices.

According to various embodiments, the present disclosure provides abattery pack that is smaller, smarter, and can scale up in capacitywithout scaling up too much in size. In some embodiments, the batterypack comprises 7 polymer cells, a regulatory motherboard, a chargingboard, a buzzer, Bluetooth capability, and LED lights. The custommotherboard regulates the flow of power, and can allow up to 6 motors tobe run simultaneously. The charging board stabilizes the polymer backand the motherboard ensures even charging and discharging of polymers,which prevents the device from becoming bogged down or stopping. Inaddition, the motherboard adds an additional safety feature to theoperation of the battery pack. In case of charging and dischargingoutside of the safety guidelines, the motherboard also acts as a safetydevice by shutting down all functions of the battery pack due toatypical behavior.

According to various embodiments, four green LED lights and a fifth redLED light operate together as a scale indication of battery levelremaining in the power pack. Once the battery life falls below 24%capacity, the red LED light will be lit during operation of thefurniture. If the battery capacity drops below 10%, the red LED lightwill flash red when engaged.

Further, a buzzer which interacts with the furniture will sound at 10%capacity or below, indicating that the battery needs to be recharged.Each time the motor is engaged, the battery will sound until it isrecharged.

Example Embodiments

FIG. 1A illustrates a top perspective view of an example battery pack.Battery pack 100 includes an outer case, or body, 102, external LEDdisplay 108 with a power button 109, a charging cable 104 (input), andan output cable 106. In some embodiments, outer case 102 comprises ahigh density, heat resistant plastic. In some embodiments, power button109, when pushed, causes LED lights 108 to display how much battery lifeis left. FIG. 1B illustrates a bottom perspective view of battery pack100.

FIG. 1C illustrates a top perspective view of battery pack 100 with theoutside casing removed. Inside outer case 102 is a plurality of polymercells 200. In some embodiments, the plurality includes exactly sevencells with a voltage of 3.7 volts each. This is because the totalplurality of cells 200 needs to have a total voltage of 25.9 volts inorder to operate industry standard motorized furniture. In someembodiments, charging motherboard 400 directly connects each cell in theplurality of cells 200. Charging motherboard 400 is described in moredetail with respect to FIGS. 4A-4B below. Charging motherboard 400 isconnected to regulating motherboard 300 via positive current wire 110,negative current wire 112, and a plurality of cell wires 118. In someembodiments, the plurality of cell wires 118 comprises seven wirescorresponding to each of the seven cells in the plurality of cells 200.Motherboard 300 connects to charging cable 104 and output cable 106.Motherboard 300 is described in more detail below with respect to FIGS.3A-3B.

In some embodiments, the cells 200 are protected from direct contactwith outer casing 102 via protector 114. In some embodiments, protector114 comprises a high density foam with a double side adhesive. The highdensity foam protects against impact and the adhesive keeps the cellsfrom shifting around in the box, thereby reducing the risk of breakingconnections and becoming a fire hazard. As can be seen in FIG. 1D,protector 114 is located on each side of battery pack 100 that can beexposed to out casing 102. In some embodiments, the top and bottom sidesof battery pack 100 each have two protectors 114. However, in otherembodiments, protector 114 on the top and bottom sides can comprise onelarge high density foam piece that covers the cell completely. In someembodiments, foam protector 114 is also attached to the back of one orboth motherboards to further protect the motherboards and cells fromimpacting outer casing 102 directly.

In some embodiments, charging cable 104 and output cable 106 areattached to outer casing 102 via stoppers 105. Stoppers 105 serve tohold the cables in place securely and also help provide furtherinsulation to the wires within the cables from outside elements. FIG. 1Dillustrates a bottom perspective view of battery pack 100.

FIG. 1E illustrates yet another perspective view of battery pack 100,with mother board 300 peeled back to expose the other side of themotherboard. Peeling back motherboard 300 also exposes the connectionpoints to inside wire pairs 104 n and 104 p, and 106 p and 106 n,located in charging cables 104 and 106, respectively. Inside wires 104 nand 106 n are negative current wires. Inside wires 104 p and 106 p arepositive current wires.

In some embodiments, the plurality of cells 200 is bound together viastatic free tape 116. Tape 116 binds the cells together to preventindividual cells from moving and reducing the possibility of a cellbreaking off from the charging motherboard 400 and creating fire hazard.In some embodiments, tape 116 needs to be free of metal or conductormaterial and must be static free. In some embodiments, tape 116 can beKapton tape.

FIG. 2A illustrates a top perspective view of battery cell 200. In someembodiments, cell 200 comprises a substantially square outer case 202.In some embodiments, outer case 202 is made of aluminum or some otherkind of metal. However, since aluminum is not very sturdy, in someembodiments, cell 200 also includes a plastic protective covering 206that surrounds aluminum case 202. Each cell 200 includes a positive pole204 p and a negative pole 204 n which will be inserted intocorresponding slots on charging motherboard 400. FIG. 2B illustrates abottom perspective view of cell 200.

FIG. 3A illustrates a frontside view of example regulatory motherboard300. Motherboard 300 is responsible for monitoring and regulating thecharging and discharging of the cells. In addition, motherboard 300 isresponsible for most of the functions of battery pack 100. Further,motherboard 300 is also responsible for the safety of battery pack 100because polymer cells contain dangerous substances and charging themwith electricity or discharging them, if done incorrectly, can lead todisastrous consequences. In some embodiments, motherboard 300 cancomprise a printed circuit board (PCB) motherboard. Motherboard 300includes a non-conductive base 302 and trace wires 342 printed on base302 that make up the circuit of motherboard 300.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 300 includes processor 330for performing all the board's functions. Processor 330 acts as thebrain of the board. It is a programmable chip programmed to work withall of the battery pack functions, charging, discharging, safetyregulation, balancing of the cells individually as well as a pack,monitoring the temperature, LED light display and function, andcommunicates with Bluetooth processor 348. Processor 330 basicallycontrols all functions of motherboard 330 and works with all theelements described below to implement the functions of battery pack 100.The elements described below, with the exception of processors, aresimply elements that assist processor 330 with the functions describedattributed to the elements. In addition, even the other processors, 348and 308, are in communication and work with processor 330. In someembodiments, processor 330 is responsible for turning off the outputwhen the battery pack is charging. In some embodiments, this may beimportant because the batteries are more volatile as they are charging.Thus, turning off usage while the battery is charging is safer.

In some embodiments, on one side of motherboard 300 sits four wireconnection points 306 n, 306 p, 304 p, and 304 n. These connectionpoints electrically connect current wires 106 n, 106 p, 104 p, and 104 nto motherboard 300. In some embodiments, the connection points aresoldering points because the wires are soldered onto the motherboard. Insome embodiments, the connection points are welding points, because thewires are welded, via either tack welding or spot welding, tomotherboard 300. In some embodiments, if the wires are soldered, then anextra protective layer comprising an insulating material, such assilicone or rubber cement, should be applied to the solder points toprevent solder balls from moving, thereby immobilizing them andpreventing them from becoming a potential hazard or shorting thecircuit. In some embodiments, welding is preferred because of thepossibility of solder balls forming during soldering. As describedherein, any connection points disclosed can be done with eithersoldering or welding, depending on preference.

In some embodiments, motherboard 300 regulates the even charging anddischarging of the polymer cells. It does this by monitoring cellperformances relative the whole and then limiting other cells to matchwith the lowest performing cell. The polymer cells connect to chargingmotherboard 400 which then connects the cells to motherboard 300 via aplurality of wires 118. In this example, the plurality includes sevenwires corresponding to each of the seven cells 200. Wires 118electrically connect the cells to motherboard 300 via junction 350. Insome embodiments, junction 350 includes connection points 344 forconnecting the wires to motherboard 300. Connection points 344 are thenconnected to a plurality of resistor chips 324. Resistor chips 324 areresponsible for balancing the input of power for each cell by limitingthe amount of current in the circuit and defuse current from diodes 322.Diodes 322 stabilize the current and limits fluctuations and temperaturestability. In some embodiments, if a cell has reached full charge,diodes 322 also reroutes the current to resistor chips 324 and defusesthe current overall. In some embodiments, voltage regulators 326 areresponsible for ensuring that each cell is regulated to be within3.3-3.7 volts. Voltage regulators 326 also monitor the charging of eachcell. Resistor chips 324, diodes 322, and voltage regulators 326 worktogether with processor 308 to monitor and regulate the balance ofcharge within the cells. Processor 308 ensures that input into the cellsis the same, thus allowing for multi-cell units to function properly. Insome embodiments, one mechanism for how processor 308 works is by firstallowing current to go directly from voltage regulators 326 to junction350 to charge the cells. After the cells becomes fully charged,processor 308 diverts the current to diodes 322 which then goes intoresistors 324, where the current stops or dissipates. In someembodiments, each row of elements 326, 322, and 324 is individuallycapable of being shut off by processor 308. In some embodiments,processor 308 works with processor 330 to accomplish the chargemonitoring.

In some embodiments, motherboard 300 also includes diodes 312, which areresponsible for transient voltage suppression, via processor 330. Diodes312 provide circuit protection by regulating against spikes in currentcharging and discharging. In some embodiments, motherboard 300 alsoincludes resistors 332 for regulating wattage in the circuit andcapacitors 334 for regulating voltage in the circuit, via processor 330.In addition, motherboard 300 can also include a plurality of resistorsand capacitors 336 as extra layers of protection against failure.

In some embodiments, one major function of motherboard 300 is safetywith regard to overheating. Safety is important because over usage canlead to overheating, which can lead to melting of important electricalparts, which would mean irreparable damage, as well as a fire hazardaround dangerous chemicals in the polymer cells. Thus, in someembodiments, there are many safety mechanisms on motherboard 300 thatwork with processor 330 to ensure that the battery does not overheat andexperience a thermal event. For example, transistor switches 316 areheavy duty switches that monitor the flow of power in and out of theplurality of cells. Resistor chips 318 act as current sensors andregulate the circuit to make sure the cells do not overcharge. Negativetemperature coefficient (NTC) thermometer 346 also helps with safetyregulation. NTC 346 wraps around and rests on the entire plurality ofcells and physically monitors the heat. In some embodiments, NTC 346includes a thermometer tip that is dipped in plastic to preventmoisture. In some embodiments, NTC 346 monitors the temperature to makesure it does not past a threshold temperature (e.g., 35 degreesCelsius). If the temperature passes the threshold, thermometer 346increases resistance and alerts processor 330 to shut off the battery.In some embodiments, motherboard 300 also includes positive temperaturecoefficient (PTC) thermistor 340. PTC 340 also changes the resistance ofthe current and is used to determine if the circuit is too hot or toocold. The resistance in PTC 340 increases with heat, thereby slowing thecurrent down. As temperature decreases, PTC 340 decreases resistance inthe circuit, to increase current. Both PTC 340 and NTC 346 regulatecurrent based on temperature. The difference is that they do it withopposite charges.

In some embodiments, motherboard 300 also includes diodes 320 forcommunicating, via processor 330, the remaining power left in thebattery pack to LED lights 108. If the remaining power drops below apredetermined threshold, e.g. 10%, then diode 320 informs processor 330to engage buzzer 352. Buzzer 352 emits a sound every time a user engageswith the motorized furniture. In some embodiments, the sound is a singlequick beep/chirp, a series of beeps or chirps, or a prolongedbeep/chirp.

In some embodiments, motherboard 300 also includes Bluetooth processor348. Bluetooth processor 348 works with processor 330 to shut off outputfrom the battery. This eliminates the problem of a constant power draw(a passive draw of around 37 milliAmps) from the battery even when themotors are not in use. While Bluetooth processor 348 itself will stillhave a small constant current (a passive draw of only around 14microAmps), Bluetooth processor 348 essentially allows a user, via amobile device, to be able to turn off the output almost completely forthe battery. In addition, Bluetooth processor 348 will be able to tell auser what the remaining power is within the battery and allow the userto set an alert when the battery reaches a minimum threshold (e.g., 25%)to remind the user to recharge the battery. Last, in some embodiments,Bluetooth processor 348 is further configured to be able to tell howmuch time had passed since the last recharge.

FIG. 3B illustrates a backside view of regulatory motherboard 300. Insome embodiments, the backside has a base 360 which is different frombase 302 because the backside base 360 has a different printed circuiton it. Backside 360 includes a switch 372 that includes power button 109for turning on LED lights 108. In some embodiments, switch 372 can alsoput the battery pack in demo mode if pressed and held for a thresholdnumber of seconds (e.g., 5 seconds). In some embodiments, demo modeengages buzzer 352 to beep every time a user engages with the furniture,rather than just beeping when the battery drops below a predeterminedthreshold.

In some embodiments, the backside of motherboard 300 also includes LEDlights 108. In some embodiments, LED lights 108 include five separateLED lights. In some embodiments, four of the five LED lights 362, 364,366, and 368 are green. In some embodiments, one of the LED lights 370is red. One example of how LED lights 108 display a scale of batterylife is as follows: LED light 362 turns on only when the battery ischarged at 100%. LED light 364 turns on only when the battery is chargedover 75%. LED light 366 turns on only when the battery is charged over50%. LED light 368 turns on only when the battery is charged over 25%.Last, LED light 370 only turns on when the battery is charged under 25%but more than 0%. If the battery is charged under 25% but over 10%, LEDlight 370 will be a constant red. If the battery is charged under 10%,then LED light 370 will blink red. The previous example is just oneexample of how the lights can be configured to indicate battery life.Other configurations are also possible as long as the LED lights 108 canbe turned on by power button 109 and show a scale indication of batterylife.

FIG. 4A illustrates one side of an example charging motherboard 400.FIG. 4A represents the side where the welding, either by tack welding orspot welding, occurs. It is the side that is away from the plurality ofcells 200 because welding needs to occur away from the cells to reducethe possibility of igniting the cells. Motherboard 400 includes a base402, with trace wires 408, and a plurality of welding or connectionslots 420 and 404. Each row of slots includes two slots, a slot for thepositive pole of cell 200 and a slot for the negative pole of cell 200.Motherboard 400 also includes two connection points 410 and 412 toconnect wires 110 and 112 to the motherboard. FIG. 4A also displays aconnector 450 that leads the plurality of wires 118 into junction 350 ofmotherboard 300. Each individual cell connects to the motherboard 400,which then electrically connects the cells to motherboard 300.

FIG. 4B illustrates another side of charging motherboard 400. FIG. 4Billustrates the insertion side of the motherboard. Here, each cell 200is inserted motherboard 400 by sticking the positive poles through oneslot, either 404 or 420, and the negative pole in the other slot, andthen welded on the other side shown in FIG. 4A. In some embodiments, thepositive pole goes into 404 and the negative pole goes into 420. Inother embodiments, the reverse occurs. The important thing is to notethat each cell in the plurality of cells must be inserted into themotherboard in the exact same orientation. In other words, all positivepoles have to go into the same side slot as each other and all negativepoles have to go in the same side slot as each other. In someembodiments, the insertion side includes connection points 430 to bewelded or soldered onto motherboard 400. It is important to note thatboth sides of motherboard 400, unlike motherboard 300, have the samebase 402 and trace wires 408. This is because the slots need to bepass-through, so a single circuit is printed on the motherboard.

FIG. 5A illustrates an example industry standard batter pack. Theindustry standard battery pack 500 usually includes a front cover 502, aback cover 504, and batteries 550. FIG. 5B illustrates an exampleindustry standard battery cell 550. Standard industry battery cell 550usually has a tubular shaped body 552, similar to standard batteriesused in a wide variety of electronics.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example comparison of an improved battery pack anda standard battery pack, in accordance with some embodiments. FIG. 6depicts a 6000 mAh battery pack 100, in accordance with someembodiments, juxtaposed next to a standard industry 1300 mAh batterypack for furniture. As a point of comparison, 6000 mAh battery pack is605.22 cm³, while the 1300 mAh standard industry battery pack is 554.62cm³. Thus, for relatively the same size, the 6000 mAh battery packdisclosed herein provides 4.6× the amount of capacity. As another pointof comparison, a 6000 mAh standard industry battery pack would have tobe 2,566.13 cm³, which is 424% bigger than the 6000 mAh battery packdisclosed herein.

In some embodiments, both the charging cable 104 and 106 are located onthe same side on battery pack 400, while the charging cable 604 is onthe opposite side of output cable 606 on battery pack 600. This allowsfor an even greater reduction in space.

FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate an example of motorized furniture functions, inaccordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, battery pack 100can be used to power motorized furniture 700. FIG. 7A shows motorizedmovement in the backrest 702, which allows the backrest to recline, asshown in FIG. 7B. FIG. 7C shows motorized function in the leg rest,allowing the leg rest to elevate into a zero gravity position.

FIG. 8 illustrates one example of an electronic system, in accordancewith some embodiments. According to particular embodiments, a system 800suitable for implementing particular embodiments of the presentdisclosure includes a processor 801, a memory 803, an interface 811, anda bus 815 (e.g., a PCI bus or other interconnection fabric) and operatesbattery packs and/or furniture. When acting under the control ofappropriate software or firmware, the processor 801 is responsible forimplementing applications for regulating battery levels, operatingmotorized functions, and interacting with a user. Various speciallyconfigured devices can also be used in place of a processor 801 or inaddition to processor 801. The interface 811 is typically configured tosend and receive data packets or data segments over a network or througha wireless connection, such as Bluetooth. System 800 can also includeone or more motors 817 electrically connected to processor 801 formoving pieces of furniture.

Particular examples of interfaces supported include Ethernet interfaces,frame relay interfaces, cable interfaces, DSL interfaces, token ringinterfaces, and the like. In addition, various very high-speedinterfaces may be provided such as fast Ethernet interfaces, GigabitEthernet interfaces, ATM interfaces, HSSI interfaces, POS interfaces,FDDI interfaces and the like. Generally, these interfaces may includeports appropriate for communication with the appropriate media. In somecases, they may also include an independent processor and, in someinstances, volatile RAM. The independent processors may controlcommunications-intensive tasks such as packet switching, media controland management.

According to various embodiments, the system 800 is an electronic systemconfigured to regulate a battery pack, operate furniture, or somecombination of both. The electronic system may include one or morehardware elements as shown in FIG. 8. In some implementations, one ormore of the electronic system components may be virtualized. Forexample, parts of a physical electronic system may be configured in alocalized or cloud environment. Although a particular electronic systemis described, it should be recognized that a variety of alternativeconfigurations are possible. For example, the modules may be implementedon another device connected to the electronic system.

The battery packs presented in the present disclosure provide manybenefits over the current art. For example, the battery packs disclosedherein are extremely small in relation to the current technologyavailable. In addition, they can run up to 6 motors, while industrystandards will only run up to 2 without bogging and stoppage. Further,the custom motherboard allows the use of connected polymer cells,thereby reducing the volume in a 1300 mAh battery from the industrystandard 554.62 cm³ to 219 cm³. In addition, the scale LED allows a userto see the volume of power remaining in the battery, which is notcurrently available in furniture battery packs. In some embodiments, thebuzzer notifies the user upon interaction with motor the battery levelis 10% or less and needs to be recharged. In some embodiments, theBluetooth processor allows a user to turn off the battery pack output,thereby reducing the constant power draw from the battery even when themotorized furniture is not in use and prolonging the life of the batterypack. Last, the battery packs have the capability to disable the outputcable while the battery pack is charging. The increases safety and thelife of the battery pack.

While the present disclosure has been particularly shown and describedwith reference to specific embodiments thereof, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that changes in the form and details of thedisclosed embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit orscope of the present disclosure. It is therefore intended that thepresent disclosure be interpreted to include all variations andequivalents that fall within the true spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure. Although many of the components and processes are describedabove in the singular for convenience, it will be appreciated by one ofskill in the art that multiple components and repeated processes canalso be used to practice the techniques of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A battery pack to be used in motorized furniture,the battery pack including: a plurality of polymer cells, the pluralityof polymer cells connected such that a threshold voltage is achieved;and a motherboard coupled to the plurality of polymer cells, wherein themotherboard is configured to monitor and regulate each cell in theplurality of cells, as well as the entire plurality of cells as a whole,wherein motherboard is further configured to alter the charging anddischarging of each cell in the plurality of polymer cells individuallysuch that all the cells in the plurality of polymer cells charge anddischarge at the same rates.
 2. The battery pack of claim 1, furthercomprising a second motherboard for connecting directly to the pluralityof polymer cells, wherein the second motherboard is electricallyconnected to the motherboard.
 3. The battery pack of claim 1, whereinthe threshold voltage is 25.9 volts.
 4. The battery pack of claim 1,wherein the plurality of polymer cells comprises exactly seven cellswith a voltage of 3.7 volts each.
 5. The battery pack of claim 1,wherein the plurality of cells and the motherboard are configured tooperate two to six motors at the same time.
 6. The battery pack of claim1, further comprising an LED light configured to represent remainingpower in the battery pack.
 7. The battery pack of claim 1, furthercomprising a buzzer configured to notify a user that the battery levelis 10% or less when the user activates the motor.
 8. The battery pack ofclaim 1, wherein the motherboard includes a Bluetooth processor suchthat a user can turn off the battery output using a mobile device. 9.The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the battery pack is configured tobe charged with a trickle charger.
 10. The battery pack of claim 1,wherein the battery pack includes one of the following charge capacityto physical volume ratios: 1) 2000 milliampere hours (mAh) to 337.83cm³, 2) 4000 mAh to 459.77 cm³, and 3) 6000 mAh to 605.22 cm³.
 11. Amotorized furniture system comprising: one or more furniture pieces; oneor more motors configured to move portions of the one or more furniturepieces; and a battery pack, the battery pack comprising: a plurality ofpolymer cells, the plurality of polymer cells connected such that athreshold voltage is achieved; and a motherboard coupled to theplurality of polymer cells, wherein the motherboard is configured tomonitor and regulate each cell in the plurality of cells, as well as theentire plurality of cells as a whole, wherein motherboard is furtherconfigured to alter the charging and discharging of each cell in theplurality of polymer cells individually such that all the cells in theplurality of polymer cells charge and discharge at the same rates. 12.The motorized furniture system of claim 11, further comprising a secondmotherboard for connecting directly to the plurality of polymer cells,wherein the second motherboard is electrically connected to themotherboard.
 13. The motorized furniture system of claim 11, wherein thethreshold voltage is 25.9 volts.
 14. The motorized furniture system ofclaim 11, wherein the plurality of polymer cells comprises exactly sevencells with a voltage of 3.7 volts each.
 15. The motorized furnituresystem of claim 11, wherein the plurality of cells and the motherboardare configured to operate two to six motors at the same time.
 16. Themotorized furniture system of claim 11, further comprising an LED lightconfigured to represent remaining power in the battery pack.
 17. Themotorized furniture system of claim 11, further comprising a buzzerconfigured to notify a user that the battery level is 10% or less whenthe user activates the motor.
 18. The motorized furniture system ofclaim 11, wherein the motherboard includes a Bluetooth processor suchthat a user can turn off the battery output using a mobile device. 19.The motorized furniture system of claim 11, wherein the battery pack isconfigured to be charged with a trickle charger.
 20. The motorizedfurniture system of claim 11, wherein the battery pack includes one ofthe following charge capacity to physical volume ratios: 1) 2000milliampere hours (mAh) to 337.83 cm³, 2) 4000 mAh to 459.77 cm³, and 3)6000 mAh to 605.22 cm³.